The Fool Skips In
I recently volunteered my services to speak to a community group in a few months. I don’t see myself as a group presenter. I am better one on one. I don’t want to withdraw because I really want to do it. But I don’t want to fail either – or have people yawning. What is in the cards? Thanks.
Nervous Nellie at the Starting Gate
Dear NnatSG,
Stage fright is known as one of the most stressful experiences a person can have. Kudos for putting yourself in an uncomfortable situation in order to outgrow your fear! Let’s see what is in the cards for you as a presenter…
The cards for your reading are the Five of Wands, the Hermit and the Fool. To summarize what I see in these cards for you: By organizing your thoughts and understanding your topic, you will be successful even though you are inexperienced with presenting to a group.
The Five of Wands at the start of your reading represents the state of affairs you are entering into. It appears that the most difficult part of this effort is at the very beginning when your audience is milling about talking amongst themselves. Be sure to be confident in getting everyone’s attention, and have your first few sentences memorized so that you can hold their attention and give them an idea of your style as they settle into their seats. The five young men holding the wands in this card all appear to have different ideas about how to move forward. They obviously are in need of a leader to give them some direction. That would be you, as you direct their thoughts into new realms of understanding. They are all wearing different color and style clothing as well as footwear indicating they come from different backgrounds and walks of life. No two people are the same, it is up to you to find the common thread of interest and help them to work together toward their next step.
The Hermit is you guiding them with your lantern. You may have to lead the way a bit. Give them real life examples to help them fully understand how to apply what you are saying in useful terms. This isn’t so much about impressing them with your knowledge as it is helping them to understand so they can make progress in their own way. Think about how much involvement you want to have with this organization before you get started. Be sure you are clear about your boundaries so they do not give you more responsibility than you want to have. You don’t want to have to hide from them on a mountaintop somewhere you think they cannot find you! Your wisdom will shine through your enthusiasm, but you are passing the torch, not necessarily leading the parade… or are you? That is up to you.
The Fool and his happy dog are naively entering unchartered territory but completely trust that the ground will rise up to meet them. The choppy mountain peaks in the background carry forth from the Hermit card showing that you bring the knowledge that you need with you. This could be the beginning of something very special and significant for you. I am glad you are taking it seriously. It will benefit you to give some thought as to how much involvement you would like to have. We can all only take one step at a time, and the more courageous you feel the more you will expand your horizons. The Fool in a reading always lets us know that we can trust completely and let go and the universe will take care of us.
No worries. You are educated on your topic and your audience is in need of learning what you have to say. Keep it light and let it flow naturally. And of course, the best advice of all has always been to … imagine them all in their underwear!